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tv   The Situation Room  CNN  April 3, 2013 2:00pm-4:00pm PDT

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of wolf blitzer in "the situation room." tomorrow is a sneak peek on "madmen." wolf? >> thanks very much, jake. happening now, north korea says the armed forces have the go ahead for a nuke lack strike on the united states. family of new town victims up open like never before despite the incomprehensible loss, they refuse to let strategy define them, discovering the good that can come from unthinkable evil. "people" magazine exclusive that you will see here on cnn. we'll also hear live from president obama who is taking his push for greater gun control to colorado. is there still a chance the congress will act. and the president writes checks to the american taxpayer. why is he giving back 5% of his salary. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room."
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>> let's begin with breaking news. a chilling development out of north korea that says the military has final approval for a attack on the united states. this is proof that the united states is planning to send a missile defense system to gaum where thousands of u.s. troops are based. we are in seoul, south korea. barbara starr has the latest information from the pentagon. what is the information? >> well, wolf, pentagon officials looking at the statement from north korea shaking their heads. the north koreans are not giving up on their rhetoric. most say they are not capable of striking the united states with a nuclear tip missile. but there are some 28,000 u.s. troops in south korea and the entire asia region, certainly on edge. one of the reasons, it is
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sending missiles to guam because the north koreans have threatened guam. even before all of this happened today, defense secretary chuck hagel was out in public talking about this. very sober. listen. >> they have nuclear capacity. now they have the missile delivery capacity now. and so as they have ratcheted up their dangerous rhetoric and some of the actions they have taken over the last few weeks present a real and clear danger and threat to the interests certainly of our allies, starting with south korea and japan and also the threats that the north koreans have levelled directly at the united states,
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regarding our base andin guam. threatened hawaii. threatened the west coast of the united states. >> now so far u.s. intelligence officials say they see no unusual troop movements by the north koreans. that is very key. but in addition they say intelligence is very iffy about north korea. there's no sets on the ground, no direct information. the information comes from u.s. satellites flying overhead or what they are able to gleam from north korean news reports or talking to the chinese. the whole problem is a very tough one because they are not sure what they are up to. >> how is all this playing out in south, korea? and you're only 20 or 30 miles? >> yeah, very, very close. people here are living next to
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this threat for a long time. something we should point out is the timing of the message. it was not named at people in seoul, it was aimed at the united states. and here in south korea, they been living with this threat for a very long time. what is unusual and difficult for south krns. o to try to digest and read is what is kim jong undoing? back in what is now looking like the good old day, there was a little more time and depth between the threats. so now the timing of it, how quickly it's coming, but this country is accustomed to looking at what north korea does, not what it says. so when you look at what it
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does, what's concerning is what's happening at the border. this unusual business complex where north and south koreans work side by side. they are still technically at war. what is happening is 800 south koreans are still working in the facility. no south koreans are being allowed in. they are being allowed out. that's what people are watching in south korea. >> the tension have very high. we'll get back to you. standby, barbara starr as well. we're also speaking with madeline albright. she met with kim jong-il, what she has to say is coming up. meanwhile in the united states, president obama is taking his push for gun control on the road once again. right now he's at the scene of two horrific massacres.
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columbine high school in 1999 and last year in aurora. the president has met with victims of both shootings. we'll have live coverage of that once he starts going. meanwhile, let's bring in jessica yellin on the scene for us in denver. are we getting any indication of what the president has to say? >> wolf, we are. he is going to highlight the tough new gun safety laws. and he'll make the case, according to sources in a state like colorado that has a long frontiered twra digs of gun owner ship can pass the laws, then so can congress. colorado passed the new laws last month that show universal background checks. they make gun owners pay for the cost of the background checks and limit magazine clips to 15 rounds. and the president is due out
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here any minute. i think he's still in that meeting with law enforcement officials and the families of victims. >> what kind of response have we seen in colorado with new laws as far as guns are concerned? >> well, not everyone is a fun of the new laws. some of colorado's sheriffs have already warned they're not going to enforce them. some are saying they're still weighing if they're going to let the laws stand in their counties. listen to what one sheriff had to say. >> the president and the vice president made their presence very well known throughout this, between them and mayor bloomberg there's a feeling that a lot of these feelings were pushed through washington, new york and chicago, and i can tell you, in colorado, people don't like that. what has been passed is not effective. and it's going to create a very expensive bureaucracy in the state of colorado. >> so you see, it's become a
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political football a little bit. that is not representative of the state overall. polling here shows 80% of voters, wolf, support the central component of the law background checks. and 90% nationwide support background checks. more support across the country, wolf. >> certainly that's a fact. why was colorado, though, able to pass a strict law as it has when here in washington the nation's leaders seem stuck, at least for now. >> it's an excellent question. there are two central reasons that people point out here. one is that here in colorado, there was -- the threat of gun safety or gun violence, i should say, is very present in people's lives because columbine and the aurora massacre happened here. two of the worst massacres in u.s. history.
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and so people feel it in a very real way. and secondly it's just a matter of votes. the state legislature is run by democrats in both bodies. the house and senate is democratically controlled. you know in u.s. congress we have divided control. one republican house and a democratic senate. it makes a big difference in how the legislation moves. >> while the gun control push seems to have stalled for now in congress, the obama administration may still have reason to hope for an agreement when the dust settles. our chief congressional correspondent dana bash is looking into all of this. where does all this stand, especially on the issue of universal background checks? >> i'm told by sources familiar with the talks that there is still some home. central to the home is senator tom coburn. he's a conservative republican with a 100% rating from the nra.
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he will make sure criminals and those with history of mental illness can't get guns. but he opposes forcing people to keep records of those checks. that's where the run is. gun controllers say sellers are not required to keep the records. then it's impossible to force the background checks and trace the guns. >> that's what they are concerned about. that there would be a national registry of gun owners. >> that is really the big concern. but i should say that talking to sources on both sides of this, they say that is not on the table. noble is proposing a national registry, despite the rhetoric out there. but what they do say is that they want to keep the current law in place. the federal law is the system
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used for background checks by gun sellers federal licensed gugun sellers. they have to get rid of their information within 24 hours. the gun sellers keep the information but nobody is proposing changing that. >> why is senator tom coburn so important on this issue of background checks? >> he has a 100% rating from the nra. but he will bring on because of that republicans. but more importantly, wolf, conservative democrats. that is where democratic leaders and those who want to push gun control really feel the biggest problem. thaw can't even get some in their own party, especially for those up for re-election. i'm also told there is another avenue that is a possible way to get other republicans. another conservative democrat from west virginia. joe manchin.
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he's been talking to other republicans. i'm told there's a mystery republican that he is talked to. what about senator kirk of illinois? >> once we find him, we'll let him know. >> standing by to hear from the president of the united states on gun control is making a major push in colorado. once he starts speaking, we'll have live coverage. hillary clinton and joe biden share the spotlight in washington. for now. but will she be the center of attention heading towards 2016? also coming up, south carolina's mark sanford shares the stage with his former mistress, now fiance. why his comeback hopes may depend on women voters.
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address folks on common sense measures to reduce gun violence to larm, community leaders and victims of gun violence. we'll have live coverage of the president once he shows up at the stage. in the meantime, we'll move onto other political news that we're watching. it seemed his political career was over in 2009. then south carolina governor mark sanford snuch off to argentina to visit his mistress. after a nasty divorce and years in the political wilderness, sanford has won the battle for a vacant house seat. can he win over women voters in this congressional district? this is a race all the sudden. >> that's right. just because he's officially the gop candidate for the race, does not mean he's been embraced by the rest of his party.
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especially women voters. mark sanford just moved one step forward on the trail to political redemption. >> incredibly humbled. incredibly gratified, incredible bli thankful for this night and what it means on many levels. >> he once tried to cover up an affair. he had his one time mistress, now fiance by his side at the victory party. a local reporter snapped a picture of the winning kiss. >> good morning. this is elizabeth colbert bush. >> but as the democratic opponent, the sister of comedian stephen colbert instantly we ll on the attack. the families of this district need a representative who they can trust. mark sanford has the wrong values for our community. on cnn's "the lead" with jake tapper, he says he's focused on
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the issue. >> she's a famous comedian cease sister and at the end of the day, it's issues that make a difference in the race. >> even though sanford is running at a conservative district, it's a campaign filled with risks. the attacks can turn off voters at a time when reince priebus wants to hit the reset button. >> we had stupid things that were said in the last election that make it more difficult to make that case. >> i think colbert-busch could definitely win the race. she's well liked. shoost well known. she's well respected. that could trump party loyalty in this instance. >> zbop strategists hoping that republicans should consider giving up the seat for a year. and wait for the midterms in 2014. >> we could potentially come back and take that seat with someone who doesn't have fatal flaws like mark sanford. >> raising the question, what is a republican to do? >> from the republican party standpoint, they want that south
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carolina support seat. i think conservative women, it's a tough pill to swallow. there is probably no politician in america more unpopular with women than mark sanford. >> democrats are already raising money for this race on behalf of elizabeth colbert-busch. but a party strategist said this is a district that mitt romney carried by 18 points. tbd. as in to be determined. >> i suppose both will raise as much money as they can. they don't have a lot of time. >> that's right. you take elizabeth colbert-busch and mark stanford, this is instantly a national race with big implications. both sides will pour a lot of money into the race. the republican party in south carolina isn't exactly running behind mark sanford at this point. if you go to the gop website there is really no mention of mark sanford. so there are some concerns, i think out there that perhaps he
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is not the best candidate for the race. they're going to go with him. >> we'll watch the race closely and see what happens. jim acosta reporting for us. we're waiting for the president to speak on gun control. he's out in colorado. we'll have live coverage once that happens. incredibly intimate details and personal stories you never heard about the vips of the newtown shooting massacre. some of their families are speaking out for the first time since the tragedy. my mantra? trust your instincts to make the call. to treat my low testosterone,
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president obama has just started speaking out about gun violence. he's in denver, colorado.
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let's listen in. >> the good news is colorado has already chosen to do something about it. [ applause ] >> but this is a state that has suffered tragedy of two of the worst mass shootings in our history. 14 years ago this month in columbine and just last year in aurora. but this is also a state that treasures its second amendment rights. a state of proud hunters and sports j men. and there is outstanding elk hunting here in colorado. there is a strong tradition of gun ownership that is handed down from generation to
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generation. and it's part of the fabric of people's lives. and they treat gun owner ship with reverence and respect. and so i'm here because i believe there doesn't have to be a conflict in reconciling these realities. there doesn't have to be a con flick between protecting our citizens and protecting our second-amendment rights. i have stacks of letters in my house from proud gun owners, whether for support or collection who tell me how deeply they cherish their rights and don't want them infringed upon, but they still want us to do something to stop the epidemic of gun violence. and i appreciate every one of those letters, and i've learned from them. and i think colorado has shown that practical progress is
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possible thanks to the leadership of some of the state legislator who is are here today. when i was talking to steve he mentioned aurora is very much a purple city. a majority of republican city council. majority of state legislators are democrat. but they came together understanding that out of this tragedy there had to be something that made sense. and so we have seen tougher background checks that won't infringe on the rights of responsible gun ownerships ch but will help keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people. now in january, just a few weeks after newtown, i put forward a series of common sense proposals along the seem line of what has passed in colorado. to reduce gun violence and keep our kids safe. and in my state of the union
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address i urged congress to give the proposals a vote. and by the way, before we ask for a vote, i already signed numerous executive orders, doing what we could administratively to make sure the guns done fall into the hands of the wrong people. what i said then is still true. if we're really going to tackle this problem seriously, then we have to get congress to take the next step. and as soon as next week, they will be voting. as soon as next week every senator will get to vote on whether or not we should require background checks for anyone who wants to purchase a gun. now, some say, well, we already have background checks. and they're right. over the past 20 years, those background checks have kept more than 2 million dangerous people from buying a gun.
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but the loopholes that currently exist in the laws have allowed way too many criminals and folks who shouldn't be getting guns, it's allowed them to avoid background checks entirely. that makes it harder for law enforcement to do the job. >> now i understand nobody is talking about creating an entirely new system. we are simply taubing about plugging holes, ceiling a pourous system that isn't working as well as it should if you want to buy a gun, whether it's from a licensed dealer or private seller, you should at least have to pass a background check to show you're not a criminal or someone legally prohibited from buying one.
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that's just common sense. you know, during our round title discussion, the governor was in the midst of this passionate debate about the legislation in colorado and some people said, well, background checks are fot going to stop everybody. yeah, they won't stop everybody but a lot of folks have been stopped. law enforcement has been able to stop people who have been convicted of murder from getting a gun. people who were under restraining orders for having committed violent domestic abuse from getting a gun. larm has actually been able to arrest people who came to pick up their gun. because they're criminals.
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wanted. so this does work. and by the way, if you're selling a gun, wouldn't you want to know who you're selling it to? wob you want in your conscious to know that the person that you're selling to isn't going to commit a crime? so these enhanced background checks won't stop all gun crimes, but they will certainly help present some. this common sense and by the way, most gun owners, more than 80% agree this makes sense. more than 70% of nra members agree. 90% of the american people agree. so there's no reason we can't do this unless politics is getting in the way. there's no reason we can't do
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this. as soon as next week every center can vote on a proposal to strengthen school safety and help people struggling with mental held problem get the treatment that they need. as soon as next week every senator will get to vote on whether or not we should crack down on folk who is buy guns as part of a scheme to arm criminals. that would keep more guns off the streets and out of the hands of people who are intent on doing harm. and it would make life a whole lot easier and safer for the people behind me, police officers. every senator will get a say on whether or not we should keep weapons of war and high magazine capacities off the streets. the type of assault rifle used when compared to a high capacity has won use. to pump out as many bullets as possible as fast as possible.
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what allowed that gunman to shoot 70 people and kill 12 in a matter of a few minutes. i don't believe the weapons designed for theaters of war have a place in movie theaters. most americans agree with that. [ applause ] most of these ideas are not controversial. right now 90% of americans, 90% support -- or people who have been pound a danger to buying a gun. most gun owners agree. think about how often do 90% of americans agree on anything? and yet, there are already some senators in washington floating the idea they may use obscure
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procedural stunts to prooecht or delay these votes on reform. think about that. they're not just saying they'll vote no on the proposal that most americans support. they'll say they'll do everything they can to a voi allowing a vote on a proposal that the overwhelming majority of the american people support. they're saying your opinion doesn't matter. we knew from the beginning that change wouldn't be easy. we knew there would be powerful voices to do everything they could to ignore the majority of the american people. we knew they would try to make any progress collapse under fear or frustration or maybe people would just stop paying attention. the only way this time will be different is if the american people demand that this time it must be different.
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this time we must do something to protect our community and our kids. we need parents. we need teachers. we need police officers. we need pastors. we need hunters and sportsmen. americans of every bgsd to say we suffered too much main and care too much about our children to allow this to continue. we're not going to just wait for the next newtown or the next aurora before we act. and i genuinely believe that is what the overwhelming majority of americans, that's what they want. they want to see some progress. it was interesting, during the conversation, you know, a number of people had talked about the
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trust issue. part of the reason it's so hard to get this done is because both sides of the debate don't listen to each other. the people who take absolute positions on these issues on both sides sometimes are not willing to concede even an inch of ground, and so one of the questions we talked about is how to do you build trust? how do you rebuild trust? and i told a story about two conversations i had. the first conversation was when michelle came back from doing some campaigning out in rural iowa. and we were sitting at dinner, and she had been to, you know, a big county, a lot of driving out there a lot of farmland. she said, you know, if i was living out in a farm in iowa, i would probably want a gun, too.
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somebody just drives up into your driveway and and you're not home, you don't know who these people are. you don't know how long it will take for the sheriffs to respond, and i can see why you would want some guns for protection. that's one conversation. i had another conversation just a couple mons ago with a mom from chicago, actually, evanston, illinois, whose son had been killed in a random shooting, and she said, you know, i hate it when people tell me that my son was shot because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. he was in the right place. he was on his way to school. he wasn't this the wrong place. he was exactly where he was supposed to be.
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now, both those things are true. sometimes we're so divided between rural and urban and folks whose hunting is part of their lyes and folks whose only experience with guns is street crime. and the two sides just talk past one another. and more than anything what i want to emphasize is there are good people on both sides of this thing. we have to be able to put ourselves in the other person's shoes. if you're a hunter, if you're a sportsman, if you have a gun if your house pr protection, you have to understand what it feels like for that mom whose son was randomly shot.
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and if you live in an urban area, and you're worried about street crime, you have to understand what it might be like if you grew up out on a ranch and your dad had been taking you hunting all your life. and we had a couple of sportsmen in our conversation today. one of them said something very important. he said all my experiences with guns have been positive. but i realize for others all their experiences about guns have been negative. well, that's a stort, right? if we start listening to've other, then we should be able to get something done that is constructive. we should be able to get that done. one last thing i'm going to mention is during that conversation, i hope you don't mind me quoting you, joe, joe garcia also made an important point.
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and that is that the o components of the common sense laws have begined up fears that have nothing to do what is being proposed, nothing to do tw the facts, but speeds into the decision about government. you hear some of these quotes. i need a gun to protect myself from the government. we can't do background checks because the government is going to come take my guns away. well, the government is us. these officials are elected by you. [ applause ] they are elected by you. i am elected by you. i am constrained, as they are constrained. by a system that our founders put in place. it's a government of and by and
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for the people. and so surely we can have a debate that is not based on the notion somehow that your elected representative are trying to do something to you, other than potentially prevent another group of families from grieving the way the families of aurora or newtown or columbine have grieved. we have to get past some of the rhetoric that gets perpetuated that breaks down trust and is so over the top that it just shuts down all discussion. and it's important for all of us
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when we hear that kind of talk that say, hole on a second. get the facts. we're not proposing a gun registration system. we're proposing background checks for criminals. don't just listen to what some advocates or folk who is have an interest in this thing are saying. look at the actual legislation. that is what happened here in colorado. and hopefully if we know the facts and we're listening to each other, then we can actually move forward. and that's what members of congress need to hear from you. right now members of congress are home in their driks. many of them are holding event where is they can hear from their constituents. so i'm asking anyone out there who is listening today, find out where your member of congress stands on these issues.
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if they're not part of the 90% of americans who agree on background checks then ask them why not. why wouldn't you want to make it more difficult for a dangerous criminal to get his or her hands on a gun? why wouldn't you want to close the loophole that allows too many criminals to buy a gun without the simplest of background checks? why on earth wouldn't you want to make it easier, rather than harder for larm to do their job? i know some of the officers here today know what it's like to look into the eyes of a parent or a grandparent, brother or a sister or a spouse who just lost a loved one due to the act of violence. some of those families, by the way, are here today. and as police officers you know as well as anybody there's no magic solution to prevent every bad thing from happening in the world. you still suit up.
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you put on your badge, put yourself at risk every single day. every single day you go to work and you try to do the best you can to protect the people you're sworn to protect and serve. well, how can the rest of us as citizens do anything less? if there's just one step we can take to prevent more americans from knowing the pain that the families who are here have known, don't we have an obligation to try? don't we have an obligation to try? [ applause ] if these reforms keep one person from murdering dozens of innocent children or worshipers, or moviegoers in the span of minutes, isn't it worth fighting for? [ applause ]
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i believe it is. that's why i'm here to keep on working. i'm going to keep on giving it my best efforts. but i'm going to need your help. this is not easy. and i'll be blunt, a lot of members of congress, this is tough for them. because those who are opposed to any form of legislation affecting guns, they're very well organized and they're very well financed. but it can be done if enough voices are heard. so i want to thank the police officers here for giving their best efforts every single day. i want to thank the governor for his outstanding leadership. i want to thank the families here for your courage in being willing to take out of this tragedy something positive. i want to thank the people of
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colorado for coming together? sensible ways. let's see if we can get the whole country to do so. thank you, denver. god bless you. god bless the united states of america. >> so there you have the president of the united states at the denver police academy surrounded by police officers and other law enforcement in denver making a strong pitch for universal background checks. that is the most possible of legislative initiatives that could get through the senate and the house of representatives, although it's by no means a done deal. we're going to have complete analysis of what the president just said and what's going on. that's coming up. also here in "the situation room," incredibly intimate details and personal stories that we've never heard before about the victims of the newtown, connecticut, shooting massacre. some of the their families are speaking out for the first time since the tragedy. you've known? the oldn we gave people a sticker and had them show us. we learned a lot of us have known someone who's lived well into their 90s.
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and senior political analyst david gergen, who listened to the president closely. john, it looked like most of the speech was devoted to trying to get support for background checks as opposed to the other more legislatively difficult challenges. >> that's right, wolf, and that is proof positive directly from the president of how even he has lowered his sights, lowered hi goals f you will. sure, he would love congress to pass an assault weapons ban. he knows it's not going to happen. he would love congress to pass a ban on the larger magazine clips, but he knows that's most unlikely to happen. he is focusing on friarty one, the one thing that is still possible. and many believe if he keeps pushing, likely. some sort of expanded background checks. will he get universal background checks? most republicans will tell you no. but you heard the president there on the road and essentially conceding i can't do this unless you call your congressman because i need to change some votes. this is a testament of the
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president's will power. will he keep at this long enough to get to people? can he general rate? if he doesn't change a few votes and keeppressure, even background checks are at some risk in the senate. >> you know, a hot of people don't understand that, david. that if 90%, according to the news poll support strict background checks, and only, what, 8% don't support it, why is it so difficult? >> all politics is local. and people vote their districts, their states and own political safety. this are a number of democrats who are not willing to go with the president. i think to john's point, wolf, we have a speech here that was very good, it was very solid. but at 5:30 in the afternoon, to give a speech, just does not mobilize voters very well. one question was the president allowed too much time to pass. he shouldn't have tried to get this done 90 days ago, or in the immediate aftermath of the shootings in connecticut.
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some of the passions go out of this. to get, i think if he wants to -- i think he's got a good message. but if he wants to mobilize people, to get people calling their congress, sending letters to the white house, flooding the capitol hill, i really think he needs to think about a primetime event of some sort, a speech, or press conference and maybe push gun control and immigration. he's at a time in his presidency where speeches on the road at 5:30 in the afternoon, don't move the needle very much. >> this was a strong speech, john, but i guess david makes a fair point, why not a primetime address to the american public? >> the president may get to that point. remember, he used both his inaugural address and state of the union address to talk about these issues. one of the questions would be, could he get broadcast and cable fet world trade organization to carry it if he's simply pushing his legislative agenda, not adding something new to the mix. a second-term president, not on the ballot, the window for
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legislative action is clicking. they need to find some new ways to move the dial. >> david gergen and john king. we'll be discussing this a lot, especially in the coming days. we'll see if the president can get what he wants off the ground in congress. the especially when it comes to universal background checks. a letter to santa, a message on the kitchen chalkboard, a sister aching for her other half. left behind since the shooting massacre in newtown, connecticut. and we're only just beginning to hear about this for the first time as some of the victims' families are speaking out exclusively to "people" magazine. lisa sylvester has the details. >> reporter: noah loved wearing his brown winter jacket. he brought it to school at sandy hook elementary on december 14th. the day he and 19 other children were killed. >> it's the things you hold on
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to when you have nothing left. >> reporter: noah's parents share their family story in "people" magazine clutching that same brown jacket that a state trooper tracked down and returned to them. noah's twin sister is photographed holding his favorite toy. his mother sums up her grief saying it is agonizing to see your baby's name on a tombstone. >> noah was definitely a very vivacious little boy. he loved his family. he loved his sisters. they were just an inseparable trio. he's left an unimaginable void. that just is not replaceable. >> reporter: never replaceable, never forgotten and always loved. that's the story of these families, and as hard as it is to contemplate, they wanted to share this. out of this horrific tragedy, is goodness and light. nicole hockley, mother of dylan, says she has seen the worst the world has to offer, and the best. her son died in the arms of teacher aide ann marie murphy.
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>> to know she was trying to protect him. and was with him at the end. has provided some comfort. because to know that he wasn't alone, and ta being in those last moments that he was with someone who truly loved him and cared for him, that -- and that she was still looking after him. >> reporter: daniel was 7 years old. his sister holds his last letter to santa. he didn't want toys, he just wanted to see santa and the reindeer. his father said his son's legacy is his beautiful heart. >> he really did think of other people. he held doors for perfect strangers. he was kind and affectionate. >> i think that's the thing. you don't need to know someone to be nice to them. he was nice to anyone he met.
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>> reporter: his family wants you to remember not what happened in the walls of sandy hook elementary, but these words, what would daniel do. they have started a facebook page to encourage people to adopt a practice of kindness. other newtown families have found ways for their children to be remembered. katherine hubbard loved animals so much, she made business cards that read, caretaker to the animals. her family has started an animal shelter in her honor. single mother scarlet lewis still feels moments of profound grief, but also feels immense love. >> i feel my purpose is to perpetuate the message that has been created basically by this tragedy, which is choosing love. you see signs all over the town, newtown and sandy hook choose love. >> reporter: she stayed with family immediately after learning of her son, jesse's, death. but when she returned home, she found this message scribbled in her child's writing. nurturing, healing, love.
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scarlet lewis has started an organization called jesse lewis choose love.org. and other families have formed similar groups. we'll have a link on "the situation room" blog of all the various ways you can help the families directly impacted by the shooting in newtown. i've got to tell you, wolf, it was a tough story to put together when you hear some of of the emotional stories of the families. it's not just the parents, but the families. their siblings and everything else. it was a very powerful piece that "people" magazine had. >> thanks for bringing it to our viewers. the editor of "people" magazine is joining us now from new york. larry, how did you get all of these families to come together and speak to you? >> with an enormous amount of time and tenders in and care. we had reporters up there hours after the shooting. they spent a lot of time in learning more about them. we went back two months later,
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we had about a half a dozen reporters up this, to toot my own horn, or their horn, are extraordinarily. and slowly and surely convinced everyone to do this. fought all the families did it. one family turned up and decided not to do it. they all decided once they were there, to share just moments of incredible intimacy. the details in this story, i think, are really extraordinary. >> i want to play a little clip. this is the mother of 6-year-old noah posner who was killed in that school. i'll play the clip and then we'll talk. >> that's the jacket that i bought for him in the fall. i used to call him jack london when he wore it, because he just looked like an outdoorsy guy. that was one of the items that the state trooper who was assigned to us was so incredibly dedicated in tracking down. he was able to retrieve that for us. and that meant a huge amount. still does. i'll always cherish that jacket. it's the things you hold on to
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when you have nothing left. >> what a powerful statement. why was it so important to "people" magazine to revisit it tragedy? >> i think as time has gone on, the debate has moved to things that are important like gun control. but i think for us it is the power of the intimate detail. what is it like to have been these people. i think what we tried to achieve in the magazine is create that connection between people. for us, it is thatti intimate detail. when you read about a mother who says she lies down in her daughter's bed, because it's the closest thing she can get to a hug, but another mother who sleeps with her child's pajamas, because she can smell them, despite everyone knowing what newtown is, these people have to deal with this on their own by themselves. this was sharing the understanding with the reader. >> this is mark barden, the father of 7-year-old daniel.
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listen to this. >> you know, the grieving process, we're learning, is not -- it's not 24 hours a day of sobbing. it's cyclical. >> right. >> cycles of sadness, and overwhelming despair, and rage. when i'm really having a hard time. i find comfort in immersing myself in james and natalie. i go to them and physically embrace them, or engage in conversation with them, it helps me. i just feel strength from that. and they sense it, too. they see us coming apart. >> the father of daniel. those are so powerful, so emotional. how are these people coping? >> in various ways. it goes across the spectrum. there are people who didn't want to do it. there are other people who openly say they are -- they really don't know how they're going to go from day to day. it ranges. some people are more political,
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some people speak more explicitly of gun control. all of them feel kindness has to come out of this. >> the special edition of "people" hits newsstands friday. happening now, breaking news, north korea says its plans for a nuclear attack against the united states, they say those plans are ready to go. this hour, the former secretary of state madeleine albright is in "the situation room." we'll talk about the possibility of war. new problems for the carnival triumph, the same ship that trapped passengers on a cruise from hell. an arrest and threat as investigators try to solve the mystery of who's killing texas prosecutors. i'm wolf blitzer. we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. the world. you're in "the situation room." -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com the breaking news this hour,
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north korea's most brazen and provocative threats so far. kim jong-un's regime claiming plans are fou set for what they describe as a nuclear attack against the united states. the pentagon is taking defensive action right now, vowing to take north korea's aggression very seriously in case this is more than just saber rattling. tom foreman is standing by here in our virtual studio, our pentagon correspondent barbara starr is over at the pentagon. first to you, barbara, with the very latest. what's going on? >> wolf, earlier today the pentagon announced it was sending a missile defense system to the u.s. territory of guam, 2,000 miles east of the korean peninsula, because the north korean regime has threatened to attack the base in guam. the question on the table, is this all rhetoric or is it serious, is there a threat. u.s. officials shaking their heads at these latest words out of pyongyang.
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the assessment is that, look, north korea could not readily attack the continental united states, alaska or hawaii with its missiles, or its nuclear capability. it could attack, of course, the 28,000 troops just across the border in south korea. it's put the entire region on edge, and defense secretary chuck hagel made clear today, how soberly he is taking all of this. >> i hope the north will ratchet this very dangerous rhetoric down. there is a pathway that's responsible for the north to get on a path to peace, working with their neighbors. >> but make no mistake, one of the big challenges here is the lack of u.s. intelligence about exactly what the north koreans are up to. the u.s. has satellites overhead. it can get some information from the chinese. but it doesn't have any direct
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knowledge on the ground. so far, they say, they believe there are no unusual north korean troop movements, but that may be small comfort. all of this being watched now around the clock, wolf. >> thanks very much, barbara starr. let's go to south korea right now where fears of war with the north, they are very real. kim is in seoul, south korea. this must be a lot of nervousness looking at the bizarre behavior of this young north korean leader. >> well, bizarre is what they're used to here when dealing with pyongyang. and when south koreans hear this sort of rhetoric, directed at them, this is something they're used to. north korea for years has been saying to seoul, which is, again, about an hour south of the north korean border, they're used to hearing that they're going to melt down into a sea of planes. that's something the north likes to say. the difference this time, with this particular statement, is that it's directed at the u.s. directed right at the u.s.
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this statement came out at 4:00 a.m. local time. kim jong-un not speaking to his people. he is speaking to america saying, okay, you're going to move warships here, f-22s, you're going to move a defense system to guam, this is north korea reacting. viewed in a slightly different lens from the ground level here in south korea, because they are so used to it. but there is that concern, wolf, that kim jong-un, man child that he may be, still has his finger on the fu clear button. >> what worries me, is that there could be some miscalculation. the north koreans could do what they did a couple years ago, blow up a south korean warship, kill a lot of south korean sailors. at that time the south korean government did not respond, did not take retaliation. but this time there's a new leader, and she's pretty tough right now. she presumably would be under a lot of pressure to respond. who knows what would happen after that. >> she's pretty tough, as you
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say, and she also has something extraordinary to prove. just like kim jong-un is 28, 29, something to prove to himself, and to the international community. this woman, the first female president for this country, in a male dominated society, certainly has something that she needs to prove. she wants to show that she is behind her people. but something you should also understand, while we're hearing all this rhetoric, all this smoke and mirrors at the front, what we're also seeing is this president is still allowing the very first shipment of humanitarian aid to go into the north. we just spoke to an ng oh. they're going to be able to deliver tuberculosis medicine into north korea. the north korean government is still allowing that shipment to take place. that is significant. it does show that even though the south korean president is being very strong with her rhetoric as well, she's still
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giving a hand to north korea. >> cool heads prevail all around. there's clearly a lot of concern and uncertainty about what the new young leader of north korea, kim jong-un, is up to. the tom foreman is in our studio. spider marks studied north korea's military for several years. >> wolf, despite the global implications that would follow, if north and south korea went to full anwar, the truth is, the korean peninsula would really bear the prunt of all of this. that's where most of the fighting would take place. we know the dmz between the south and north is so heavily fortified, that neither side can just charge in and go across that land to attack the other. if the north wanted to set this up and make it happen, what do they do? >> tom, the very first thing we're going to see is large concentrations of artillery and missile fire from the north to targets in the south. seoul is just south of the dmz. what's interesting is the firing positions are on the north slope
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of the mountains. that define the dmz. very difficult for the coalition forces if the south to see those pieces before they're activated. >> so while that firing is occurring from these mountains down here, what else is going on from the north? >> the north is going to activate the insertion of special operations forces, both along the coasts. >> taking them in by ship or submarines? >> submarines most likely, as well as the activation of sleeper agents in the south. in some cases as many as a couple of decades, identifying targets. >> the u.s. and south korea is not just going to sit this while all of this happens, so what is the immediate response if an attack took place? >> the sufficient navy will increase its presence. the. >> more aircraft carriers? >> more aircraft is what we're looking for. you have aircraft in japan, aircraft in south korea. you know how these aircraft will go against these firing positions that are tar getting the south. it's called the counterfire
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fight. once that's accomplished, they will then go after the command and control capabilities as well as the air defenses. >> communications, air defenses. >> you got it. completely own this air space above north korea. >> then what happens? >> then they'll probably go after very specific targets like bridging in the north to eliminate the freedom of moflt. so the north korean forces cannot maneuver in their own country. >> all right. so if all of that happens, obviously you have a shift in the battle. the north takes the initiative to start the attack, but then the south and the u.s. responds. how quickly does it turn so the initiative is not in the hands of the north but in the hands of the u.s. and coalition forces? >> what's important to realize is, the coalition, u.s. and south korea response will be instantaneously. however, the control of that will be over the course of probably three to four days and the momentum will shift toward the coalition. and their objective is to maintain the armistice. >> but you don't think this will happen? >> not at all. i think the risks are way too
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high. >> what do we expect? >> mostly limited objective attacks. not unlike what we saw before. >> when they bombed the islands and attacked the boat off the coast? >> you've got it. where the north koreans will go after south korean specific targets. not targeting the united states. trying to keep it contained somewhat. >> and yet send a very clear message that they have a strong new leader and strong military and need to be respected that way in the world. wolf? >> tom foreman, spider, thanks for that analysis. later this hour, i'll speak with the former secretary of state madeleine albright about north korea's threat and potential danger for the united states and the region. that interview coming up. up next, another dangerous situation for the carnival triumph only two months after passengers were trapped aboard a nightmare cruise. we'll hear from the fired rutgers basketball coach. the she's still the one for you -
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. today's latest bad luck for carnival true um of, where an engine fire forced passengers to endure a slow miserable trip home. today during a storm, it broke loose from its repair dock if mobile, alabama. john zarrella is joining us with the details. broke loose? how does that happen, john? >> another twist in the saga of the triumph, back in february, it took four days to tow it to mobile, alabama, for repairs. and the passengers had to endure all those miserable conditions. the well, now, today, this were high winds reportedly about 70 miles an hour, and there will be an investigation now into how it may have broken loose from its moorings at the repair dock where the work is going on.
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now, the ship, when it broke loose, it actually drifted across the bay and hit a -- across the river and hit a cargo ship on the other side of the river. it caused some damage, as you can see, in those images, to the stern of the triumph. they said this are numerous tugs on the scene as well as coast guard cutters. they are stabilizing the cruise ship. the bad news in all of this, the worst news is that two members of the company that was doing the repairs, they went overboard, fell if the water, not clear if they were working on the dock or working on the ship. one man was rescued, but the coast guard is now searching for that second unidentified man. and they have been for the last couple of hours, with their own people if the water, and searching on the water. but with no luck so far in finding that unidentified man. wolf? >> we hope they find him. and he's okay. obviously. but the huge ship like this,
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even if there are 75-mile-an-hour winds, how extraordinary is it that it can loosen itself from the dock? >> yeah, it is. we know during hurricanes, we see it all the time, that ships break loose from their moorings. but usually that's smaller ships. but we don't know what wave action there might have been on that river, which is a fairly large river. but yeah, it's very strange. and the coast guard did say, of course, there is an investigation now into what happened. and all carnival will say right now is that numerous tugs are on the scene and they are continuing to work to go ahead and stabilize. but clearly that will be a key question in the upcoming investigation. >> thanks very much, john zarrella. >> yeah. this afternoon, we also learned about an arrest in the texas county where they're investigating the recent murders of a prosecutor and his wife. authorities say this man, nick morale, called a crime tip line and named the county official
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supposedly the next victim. ed is joining us now from kaufman, texas, with the latest. what else is going on? >> reporter: well, wolf, in the midst of dealing with this tragic investigation that so many law enforcement officials are working on, they also have to deal with a little bit of the crazy, quite frankly. and authorities here have announced, and they're kind of annoyed by this, you can tell in speaking with many of these officials here at the scene, this man arrested, and charged with making terroristic threats. they arrested him if kaufman county for threatening a county official. and this is the kind of thing that they're dealing with. it's now been four days since mike mcclelland and his wife cynthia have been found murdered and still no break-through in a situation that they hoped would come to a close quickly. law enforcement sources say the hunt for the killer or killers of two kaufman county prosecutors is very broad.
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and that nothing and no one is being ruled out. >> the investigation into the murders of mike and cynthia mcclelland is ongoing. >> reporter: they arrested a kaufman county man for making terroristic threats against an official. authorities don't think he has anything to do with the killings. investigators believe the clues to finding the killers could be buried in the case files where the prosecutors worked together. but so far, there don't seem to be any breaks in the case. cnn learned of two different men who have drawn the attention of investigators, both involved in court cases where they faced off with mark hassey and mike mcclelland. neither man was taken into custody. and both told cnn they're cooperating. >> we have not in this investigation named officially a person of interest or any suspects. >> reporter: investigators are trying to establish a solid link
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between the murders of the two prosecutors. the tone of this news conference much more guarded than the one where the dead d.a. for the help of the killer of his assistant two months ago. >> anything you people can do to accelerate our -- getting our hands on this scum, will be appreciated. >> reporter: mike mcclelland and his wife cynthia were found dead saturday. investigators spent several days talking to neighbors, asking if they heard or saw something suspicious. they spent time analyzing these tire tracks and skid marks in the couple's neighborhood. could they have been left by the killer? an unanswered question at this point. one neighbor said he didn't hear anything the night of the murders. despite law enforcement sources saying high-powered rifle shells were found inside the house. >> i got about 5:00, 5:30, let the dogs out, watched a little tv, my wife was sleeping. i never heard anything. >> reporter: the string of
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murders that appear like sophisticated hits on two top local government officials has sent chills through the law enforcement community in texas. security measures are being stepped up in nearby dallas county government buildings. wolf, you know, all of this is reverberating across the street. down in houston, a u.s. attorney prosecuting a case against members of the aryan brotherhood, that has gotten so much attention, we talked to the defense attorney involved in that case, and we're told that according to an e-mail that this man received, that u.s. attorney has recused himself of the case because of threats made against him as well. so a great deal of unease and uncertainty continues here fought only in kaufman county, but around the state of texas. >> indeed. ed, thanks very much. stay right there. we're going to have some pictures involving guns, beer and hard drugs. get this, all inside a jail, in one of the country's most famous
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cities. what's going on. ted turner, he's here in "the situation room" with me. and he tells me what he misses most about running cable news. how old is the oldest person you've known? we gave people a sticker and had them show us. we learned a lot of us have known someone who's lived well into their 90s. and that's a great thing. but even though we're living longer, one thing that hasn't changed: the official retirement age. ♪ the question is how do you make sure you have the money you need to enjoy all of these years. ♪
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we have shocking video of the conditions inside new orleans notorious and now closed house of detention. lisa sylvester's got that and some of the other day's top stories. >> wolf, i think a lot of people are going to find these pictures pretty surprising. you won't really believe what you're seeing, but that is actually an inmate ejecting bullets from a loaded gun inside
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a jail cell. parts of this 2009 video showing inmates drinking beer and using drugs. although we don't know any other details happening in the jail at that time. this was shown in court yesterday, as part of a hearing op federally imposed reforms for the new orleans jail. and erin burnett will have more on this story at the top of the hour. scientists are anxiously keeping their eyes on a new and deadly strain of flu that's made the jump from birds to humans in the area around shanghai. china's justi disclosed another victim has died. so far they don't think the virus is highly contagious. big trouble for spain's increasingly unpopular royal family. the youngest daughter faces preliminary charges in a corruption scandal involving her husband's alleged use of public money for his own private purposes. it is the first time a member of the royal family's faced charges since the restoration in 1975.
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and finally, okay, we heard this was coming for a while, it is now official. nbc says jay leno will leave the "tonight show" next spring, and jimmy fallon will take over. for now, leno is being gracious and saying, i hope you hold on to the job. they tried replacing him once before in 2009 with conan o'brien. we'll see how that shakes up. but that's the landscape now, wolf. >> it will be another year before he leaves. >> 2014, exactly. >> thanks very much, lisa, for that. still ahead, the former secretary of state madeleine albright is here if "the situation room." north korea's threat to attack a nuclear attack against the united states. the rutgers university basketball coach now fired for bullying players. here's a question, to. there is a push on campus for more heads to roll. should they? w the value of your education
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happening now, north korea warning the moment of explosion is near. should the u.s. believe its threat of a new cheer attack. the former secretary of state madeleine albright is standing by to talk about the breaking news. also, president obama surrounded by police. their role, and his fight in colorado. and cnn's ted turner gets mitt cal. a message for the president if the brand-fu interview. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." back it our top story this hour, the breaking news out of north korea. it says it's finalized, yes, finalized plans for a nuclear attack against the united states, warning that war could break out, in their words, any day. even before that announcement, the united states ordered ballistic missile defenses to guam as a precaution.
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the u.s. has thousands of troops on the island of guam. defense secretary chuck hagel is calling north korea a clear danger after weeks of escalating threats. let's discuss what's going on with president clinton's secretary of state, now the former secretary of state madeleine albright here in "the situation room." madam secretary, thanks for coming if. >> good to be with you. >> listen to the fu defense secretary. >> they have fu cheer capacity now. they have missile delivery capacity now. and so as they have ratcheted up their belacose dangerous rhetoric and some of the actions they've taken over the last few weeks, present a real and clear danger, and threat to the interests certainly of our allies. >> you take all these threats from north korea seriously? >> well, we have to take them
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seriously. but i think also we should not overreact. they have had this pattern of making threats ever since i've been following it. and they go through the cycle, and they think they're going to get something out of it, and the united states is not going to give in. i think what secretary hagel has done is absolutely appropriate in terms of making sure that our allies are defended, that we are clear in terms of -- that we can defend ourselves. isn't kerry has done the same thing. but i also think, wolf, we have to be careful not to kind of bite on their excessive -- >> do you think they're bluffing? >> that's been their record. i think you have to kind of parse this a little bit. some of this is because kim jong-un, the new leader, is trying to gain control and make clear to his own people that he's in charge, especially the military. he also is somebody that is, i think, is playing this kind of provocative game. but at the same time, it fits into a pattern that they have done for a long time.
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i know when i first got to the united nations in '93, they were -- >> you were the u.s. ambassador there. >> i was the u.s. ambassador there, and they were threatening to pull out of the nonproliferation treaty. and i was bound and determined that he would thought get my goat, that we would not react to it. and so i said, i'd like to thank the representative, for making me feel 40 years younger, because i'm about to have my birthday, with this cold war rhetoric. they have been doing this kind of thing -- >> i was there a little bit more than two years ago, spent six days in pyongyang, at a time there was also severe tension. the north koreans had just bombed an island, killing a bunch of south koreans. they had bombed a south korean warship killing a bunch of sailors, more than 40 or 50 sailors. at that time the saudia arabiou didn't respond. the president of south korea is tough, she is determined if sim har kinds of provocative am
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shons by the north koreans were to take place right now, i would suspect the south korean military would respond. and i don't know what the north koreans would do. but you know they have a million troops just north of the dmz. >> they do. and i've been to the dmz, so have you. it's kind of like being on the moon and looking over into this horrible north korea, where they have loud speakers and phony buildings and various things. but i think that the part that we all have to know, the south korean foreign minister is in the united states. we are in very, very close contact, secretary kerry, the white house, in very close contact with the south koreans. they know that we have the capability of protecting them. and by the way, that's part of what secretary hagel was talking about. we have exercises going on with the south koreans as we speak. we have also made very clear we can defend ourselves. and our allies. and i think the important part here is to keep calm, and
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recognize, in fact, that they go through these cycles. the other part, wolf, that i think is important is the chinese need to really be very helpful on this. the because they are the ones that are the closest to the north koreans. they supply them with a hot of energy. and we believe that they have much more leverage on them. >> when you went as the secretary of state in the '90s, you met with king jong-un's father, kim jong-il. you brought a basketball signed by mirk michael jordan to kim jong-il. they cherish that basketball. first of all, why did you bring that basketball? >> we were in the middle of some very interesting talks. we had had interest of the number two guy come to the united states. we in fact signed a no-hostile intent agreement. they were inviting president clinton to come. and president clinton wisely said, i'm fought going to go right away. i need to have the secretary of state go to figure out what is going on.
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we did have some intelligence about kim jong-il, and one of them was that he loved michael jordan, and basketball. so i did bring that. he was very pleased. but we were in the middle -- >> his son now has met with dennis rodman. couldn't get michael jordan to come, but dennis rodman went. he said kim jong-un wants a phone call from the president. >> well, you know, i think that the main thing here is, i promise never to play basketball, if dennis rodman promises not to do diplomacy. >> he may be going back, he says. but as ridiculous as that thing sounds, the president when he was a candidate back in 2007, he did say he's open to these kinds of conversations, reaching out to these despots. >> the president i think is right in wanting to talk to people. i think the issue here is, one does not do it under these kinds of threats. and what has to happen is the north koreans know what they have to do.
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they have to abide by the agreements that they've made. we want to denew clarized korean peninsula. once they abide by all the agreements, we have a way to talk to them. >> former secretary of state madeleine albright, thank you very much. so you're not going to play basketball? >> i don't think so. >> i think dennis rodman will still be doing things. president obama makes an emotional plea to congress to pass his new gun restriction proposals. in a minute we'll explain why he went all the way to colorado to do it. new questions emerging right now about who saw what, when, and why, an abusive basketball coach, why he wasn't fired coach, why he wasn't fired before today. e! finding you the perfect place. hotels.com.
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if you've ever doubted the power of pictures, rutgers university fired its basketball coach today, less than a day after we first saw this video of him physically and verbal ri abusing his players during practice sessions. now some people are asking what took so long. cnn's mary snow spent the day on campus. >> reporter: one day after this video went viral, rutgers basketball coach mike rice was fired. but there are calls for the university to do more. rutgers officials were aware of its existence since november. rice is seen shoving and kicking players, throwing balls at their heads, and can be heard using homophobic slurs. the state-run university came under pressure after espn made
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the video public tuesday. even new jersey's governor spoke out. by wednesday morning, rice was dismissed. >> can't say anything right now. i'm sorry. there will never be a time where i'm going to use any of that as an excuse. there won't be any excuse. i've let so many people down. my players, my administration, rutgers university, the fans. my family, who's sitting if their house just huddled around because of the fact that their father was an embarrassment to them. >> reporter: on campus, students want more answers. >> action should have been taken earlier. there should be zero tolerance policy for things like that. >> reporter: athletic director, tim perneti, who decided not to fire rice last year, said in a
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statement, i thought it was in the best interests of everyone to rehabilitate, but i was wrong. his statement is not satisfying kret iks, including new jersey civil rights organization, garden state equality. its executive director came to campus demanding answers about why action wasn't taken sooner. >> is there some reason they were hiding information to protect the reputation of the university, he should resign immediately. >> reporter: there are also questions about university president robert barchi and his role in approving rice's punishment last year. in a statement he said he had only seen the video a day ago. this is what his athletic director said tuesday. >> i was aware of the tape, when i handed down the suspension at the end of december. >> did your president see this tape? >> yes. >> reporter: when asked about that, a university spokesman said, pernetti only viewed it tuesday. lawmakers said questions still need to be answered. >> i want to call the hierarchy
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of rutgers university down to the state house and conduct an investigatory kind of a hearing. i want to know if any of those student athletes ever went to the athletic director and complained about coach rice. >> reporter: and wolf, we did try to get some of those questions answered here today on campus. we tried to speak with university officials, including the university president, but we were told he was not being made available for interviews. wolf? >> mary, thank you. just a little while ago, president obama told a denver audience if a state like colorado can pass what he calls common-sense gun laws, so can congress here in washington. our white house correspondent jessica yellin is joining us from denver with more. >> reporter: hi, wolf. the president came here to call on supporters to pressure congress to pass a law expanding background checks before he said opponents can run out the clock.
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president obama traveled west to keep up his campaign for tough new gun safety laws. >> every day that we wait to do something about it, even more of our fellow citizens are stolen from our lives by a bullet from a gun. now, the good news is, colorado has already chosen to do something about it. >> reporter: he's talking about the package of new gun safety laws colorado's democratic governor signed last month. they limit magazine clips to 15 rounds, require universal background checks, and require gun customers to pay for the cost of their background checks. the proposal introduced in the u.s. senate doesn't even include two of those three new measures, but it's struggling for votes. that may be surprising, considering universal background checks are supported by 90% of the american public. so why was a cowboy state like
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colorado able to pass a strict new gun law? when the nation's leaders are still at a loss? one important reason -- gun violence is a present concern to voters in this state. it's home to two of the nation's worst mass shootings. the columbine and aurora massacres. some family members of those killed fought to pass these new gun laws, and met with the president before his speech here. among them, dave hoover, whose nephew was called in aurora. >> there were republicans' children and democrats' children that were killed in that theater that night. this is not an issue of r versus d, this is about common sense. >> reporter: tom's son was killed at columbine just after joining the debate team. >> i feel like today that's what i'm doing. i'm in his shoes. these are his shoes. >> literally? >> literally. these were the shoes he was wearing that day at columbine. >> why are you wearing them? what's the message?
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>> the message is that i can take his place on the debate team. >> reporter: and he said he is fighting for more gun safety laws. now, wolf, about a dozen colorado sheriffs say they might not enforce the state's new gun safety laws, because in their view, they violate citizens' rights, but so far, no legal challenges to those rules have been filed. >> tough road ahead for the president. ted turner wants president obama to seize the moment. my interview with the cnn founder just ahead. and the lowest middle class income tax rate in 60 years... and a billion dollars in tax breaks and incentives. new opportunities for business. over 250,000 new private sector jobs were created over the last two years. and 17 straight months of job growth. with the most private sector jobs ever. lower taxes, new incentives, new jobs, now that's news. to grow or start your business in the new new york visit thenewny.com
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turner, especially fans of this network. i spoke to my former boss today about his life and accomplishments and coming out about him called "last stand: ted turner's quest to save a troubled planet." >> i dedicate the news channel for america, a cable news network. >> on june 1st, 1980, ted turner sealed his place in history as the inventor of 24-hour tv news. it's the stuff of legend. ted turner, the man who hired me here at cnn 23 years ago is in "the situation room" right now. ted, always great to see you. thanks very much for coming in. >> my pleasure to be here. >> what's the single most important thing that people will learn about you if they read "last stand"? >> things they didn't know before. >> turner is opening up about his relationship with his father who committed suicide when ted
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was 24 years old. you had a tough father. >> i did. >> you think about him a lot still? >> a lot. i loved him very much. he was my best friend. >> after his father died, turner turned the family's struggling billboard business into an empire. over the years, he's had his hand in tv, sports, sailing, and the restaurant business. he's also passionate about his causes including the environment. he's one of america's biggest private land owners. he has about two million acres across 13 states. it's a big part of his life and the new book about him. you're really determined to save this planet, aren't you? >> i'd like to. it's the best planet we've got. >> and the single most important thing all of us can do, especially if we read this book would be -- >> is take care of everything. >> are we doing that? >> no. >> turner said his biggest goal is to change the world. he's close to fulfilling his long term pledge to give $1
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billion to help the united nations. and he's a champion of nuclear disarmament. you fear nuclear war. all of us do. >> you bet. it will be the end of the world. though i'm very much in favor of us getting rid of nuclear weapons as quickly as we can. >> turner's politics clearly lean left. he talks about his admiration for former president jimmy carter and his hopes for the current commander in chief. >> i think he's got an opportunity to really get us out of trouble. >> if he's watching you right now, give him advice. you're ted turner speaking to president obama. >> let's be sure to get this global climate change under control. >> whether it comes to politics, turner's son teddy has different views. teddy recently lost his bid for the republican nomination in a special house election in south carolina. le let's talk about your son. he was running for congress. >> that's right.
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>> as a conservative republican. >> that's okay. >> how do you feel about that? >> not bad at all. >> did you help him? >> i did help him. >> did you give him money to run? >> i did. >> ted turner isn't as rich as he used to be. his fortune is estimated at $2 billion. he reportedly was worth more than $10 billion in 2000 after the sale of turner broadcasting to time warner. since then, turner has been side lined. it's been a long time since he ran cnn but he still watches it. and so you see what's going on. so you miss it, right? >> yeah, i miss it. >> what do you miss the most about it? >> the action. there is lots of action. >> you got involved in all sorts of decisions whether the first gulf war, you were there at the end of the soviet union. you remember those days very vividly. >> absolutely. >> any big -- any one story stand out in your mind the most looking back that really changed
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you, changed cnn, may have changed the world? >> well, us staying in baghdad to cover the war from behind the lines, it had never been done before. >> on behalf of all of us, all of us not only here at cnn but all of us who love news, all of us here in the united states and around the world, todd, thank you for what you have done and what you will continue to do. >> thank you, wolf. >> you've seen plenty of golfers who walk and plenty who ride golf carts. i bet you've never seen a golfer gut around in one of these. ws when you need to leave for the airport, how much traffic there is, and can have your boarding pass ready. the droid razr maxx hd by motorola. droid-smart. droid-powerful. ♪ ♪
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no two people have the same financial goals. pnc works with you to understand yours and help plan for your retirement. visit a branch or call now for your personal retirement review.
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to enjoy all of these years. science and evidence based drug and alcohol treatment center. where your addiction stops and your new life begins. call now. why walk on the golf course when can you hover? there is not a story out of a science fiction story. jeannie moos shows us it's very real. >> reporter: it's a golf cart that is anything but par for the course and hit a driver drooling watching masters champ bubba watson tooling around in a modified hover craft, zipping over water hazards. >> who doesn't want to do that? >> if it's real, then i want one. >> reporter: bubba put the if to rest. >> this is not a gag. this is really it.
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>> reporter: oak sli bubba's sponsor, it took two months for this prototype to be adapted by a company called neotera cover craft. they've been building hover craft for 50 years. >> it's sort of a magic carpet floating around on the golf course. it's about nine inches off the ground. >> reporter: the great thing about a golf hover craft it is doesn't mess up the grass as the company founder. >> you leave absolutely no tracks. >> it's about the same force as a sea gull standing on one leg. >> reporter: now some golfers might be tempting to take a club to the hover craft. it makes about as much noise as a vacuum cleaner or an electric leaf blower. they've had several leaf blowers. they have reduced the engine noise some and hope to reduce it more. >> it was fun to do. scary to drive it. i only had a five minute lesson. >> reporter: actually, bubba, you're supposed to say fly it. the controls are on a handle bar like a motorcycle. it's a little like flying a
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helicopter. hover craft are especially good for rescues on ice and in swift moving floodwaters. it took a golf cart version to get everyone excited. should have called it the bubbahova or bubbacraft. the small company that made the prototype is being flooded with orders from golf courses worldwide. but it won't be able to meet demand for months. >> you just can't press a button and have these things coming out. >> reporter: the maker ez of bubba's hover estimate the pricetag will hover around $40,000. rich man's sport just got richer. but at least bubba didn't mow down golfers like jackie chan did with a chind hover craft in "rumble in the bronx." better to get hit by a flying golf ball than a flying bubbahova. jeannie moos, cnn, new york. >> leave it to jeansy mo